Discussion and 2 replies

In general, other attributes can be witnessed to follow the suit and score the highest in the year 2019. In the years, the operational cost has been witnessed to be rising and it can be attributed to the fact that the price of kinds of seafood has been on the rise because of factors like the fluctuating market price, changing climatic conditions, anddisrupted weather patterns. Currency prices have also been fluctuating leading to an increase in operational costs because a lot of commodities are all bought in American dollars. Once the price of the dollar is on a fluctuating mode, it means it shall be difficult to acquire it and when it becomes available it shall be expensive hence increasing the costs of operation.

From the data as shown in table 1 below, we cannot at once conclude that the company has been maintaining a certain path because the figures indicate the ups and downs the company has been experiencing. Through the years, there is no steady performance that might have been determined by some factors. 2019 was the year the company experienced a massive boom after a lower performance in the year 2020 and then recovered from it in 2021 as it is impressing for a company to swing back to business. The company has not been on a stable trend but spikes have been witnessed especially at the end of the year 2020 and the beginning of the year 2021.

There were no shady fluctuations but they are the indicators that in the course the company is in operations, there shall be changes and by considering the volatility of the industry the changes shall not be that steep. Every few years, the food industries have been experiencing price fluctuations and shocks.

Analysis of trends

Table 2

From the figures we have in Table 2 we can opt to do a trend analysis since the data in the table is a display of revenue, gross profit, net income, and expenses of all the operations. When we make a comparison from the shall indicate if the operations of the company are optimal, something that we can ascertain from the case. Beginning in 2018, there was an increase in operating expenses. The reason behind the changes is the exactly the explanations we gave earlier that the price fluctuations or might also be due to the fluctuations we experience in the foreign markets (Roberts & Berg, 2020).

Other factors notable mentioning are other food products that have been flooded in the market especially after summer when a majority of the agricultural productive areas are harvesting. In turn, these have increased the costs of business operations and unfortunately, the revenue amount was also on the increasing trend making it impossible for the company to cover the costs of operations. The two conservative years of 2019 and 2020 experienced an increase in net income with a smaller depreciation in the year 2021. Several factors automatically caused it. The major being the Corvid 19 restrictions that the government imposed due to the second and third waves of Corvid 19 viruses. The food supply was much affected as the majority of the produces were asked to work from home while others were forced to stay away so that they could reduce human congestions in workplaces.

Tread Summary

Walmart Inc. has been operating in the seafood industry for many years and has therefore gained gain and has been through both recessions and booms in the areas they are dealing with. There are several challenging factors that the industry is facing. The factors range from currency fluctuations that generally the company has no control over, the changing climatic conditions, and unpredictable weather patterns that affect fishing activities. Also, competition is experienced from other agricultural products that are easy to find than kinds of seafood that are only obtained from sees(Directory of chain restaurant operators 2020).

Giving a clear projection of the company’s performance would be quite difficult given the number of variables at hand because most of the variables at play cannot be controlled internally by the company. The company's business strategy has gotten them this far; however, it would be difficult to predict if they would be enough to get them through the next few years with the advent of technological advancements such as the increasing popularity of electric vehicles, and solar-powered devices. This is negatively impacting the demand for petroleum products. The government also is playing its role and is increasing taxes for them, to discourage the use of petrol and petroleum products. It may increase the taxes directly or indirectly. It could raise the taxes levied on emissions that they produce at the factory, which will increase their running costs.

As we have already observed, the returns on investment are already declining gradually year to year, which unfortunately may be the new trend here given all the variables at play. In my thoughts, investing here would be a massive risk for the investor, as oil depends on too many variables. Most oil-producing countries at the moment are not politically stable, and in case anything happens in the sector it means that the price of oil will skyrocket, placing a further strain on the company (Koeller et al., 2019).

The company could be financially stable for the next few years for sure, but beyond the next few years is quite a stretch given the kind of policy and financial advancements that are going around. Their best bet to improve their financial stability would be to diversify their portfolio, and stop dealing majorly in petroleum. The company could venture into new grounds, and it has already done that in several ways by opening convenience stores in its stations. This will work to increase their profit margins. They could also venture into the new technology that is coming up and embrace it before it becomes too late for them, for as sure as rain the use of fossil fuels will decline rapidly over the years(Slater, 2020).

The current ratio can be referred to as the proportionality of the current assets divided by the current liability. There has been a fluctuation of the current ratio since the year 2019, making it hard to conclude. The ratio was high that year later there was a decline of 1.427 to 1.156 then 1.309 in 2021. It helps to measure how a company is capable to cover its liabilities. This shows the highest being in 2019 then decline in 2020 then rise in 2021.

Another way of compacting the current ratio can be using the cash ratio which shows the proportion between the company's current assets and the liquid assets. There has been a decline in the company's reserve ratio since 2019. The year 2019 was a successful year for Walmart Inc as it had the highest record of profit after tax in three years of 621 million. Then later there was a decline which can be as a result of demand decline, most people have preferred using another type of foods .also more restaurants have arisen with different ideas posing completion in the market. There is an improvement since the company is considered to be flexible and adaptive to the environment, this results in the improvement in the year 2021. However, it was not so in all the fonts since there were fluctuations in share dividends. It, therefore, caused the business to be multi-fated.The profitability ratio is grouped into two gross profit margins and return on assets. Return on assets is obtained from the number of returns a company acquires after utilizing all the assets is calculated as total assets. Profit margins have been improving yearly. This indicates a high asset utilization.

The efficiency ratio will determine how a company utilizes its assets and liability. Calculated by the division of all the revenue from total assets. The company has experienced improved efficiency over the years. The fixed turnover and inventory have been impressive( Directory of chain restaurant operators 2020).

Returns on Equity

Summary

In my opinion, as seen from the company assessment it shows that every company can experience a decline despite having successful growth. The business world needs flexibility and v open-minded to accept new ideas, empress change, and have strategies of overcoming difficulties. Firms should be prepared to face some natural calamities which they have no control over. Above all how we treat and present ourselves to customers sells a lot of our business. Customers are to be treated like kings for without them there is no business.

References

Directory of chain restaurant operators. (2020).

Koeller, K., France, R. L., & Mayer, K. (2019). Gluten free dining in steak and seafood restaurants: Part of the award-winning let's eat out! Series. R & R Publishing.

Roberts, B., & Berg, N. (2020). Walmart: Key insights and practical lessons from the world's largest retailer. Kogan Page Publishers.

Slater, R. (2020). The Wal-Mart triumph: Inside the world's #1 company.

Ta, T. V. (2020). Price-forecasting models for Walmart Inc WMT stock.